Step Back
by TheHardestFall
Summary: Dianakko Week 2018 entry! Day 6. Trigger warnings inside. Deals with heavy depression, suicide and many problems leading to and from them. Rated M for language and later plot points. Diana was 18, and barely holding on. Disowned by her aunt, she was biding time until she could find a way out of the hell she found herself in. And at this point, she would take any one she could. AU


Hello and welcome to my day six fic. This one is...Different. Different and touches on themes very important to me. I will say right now it does deal with adult themes, and probably isn't for the faint of heart. So if you're not ok with reading something like this: this is your only chance to back out. It starts out rough and keeps going from there so once you're in, you're in. This does deal with an anniversary, just not a happy one. If you want fluff, I have 6 other fics that are fluffy as hell, not to mention the hundreds of other LWA fics and fan art out there.

I'm sure there's going to be some heat for this, but quite honestly, if you don't like the tone of this fic, I don't care. Don't read it, and don't bother trying to flame. Seriously I don't care. As always, I'm ok with constructive criticism, but if you're looking to hate just because, do it somewhere else.

The other thing I would like to say is if you're currently dealing with anxiety or depression and need someone, I am here and I will listen. I'm in the same boat, I get it, and I will reply. It might be delayed for a bit, but I WILL reply and do my best to help you out.

Now that that's out of the way, a bit about the inspiration for this story. I wanted to do one about Diana coping with Bernadette's death, that was for sure, and once Jumper by Third Eye Blind came on my playlist, I knew it was it. Like my day five fic, this one is song inspired, only rather than just a few lines I like, this fic follows the song. It took me about a week to forge this, and I'm quite pleased with it, both my inner author and inner musician. The story itself takes place in some nameless city, in an AU where the crew are just normal high school students, not witches.

As always, a thank you to my Beta, ImaginaryEngineer for Betaing for me. It's always appreciated!

Also, Shout out to Miss madiKaldwin (author of the fantastic LWA fic Halfway to Infinity. Seriously, go read it when you're done here.) for consulting on this and giving me feedback. You rock Madi!

Trigger warnings: Depression and all of the issues and problems relating to it.

Prompt 6: Anniversary.

Step Back.

May 27th.

There were 365 days in a year. 52 weeks. 525,600 minutes. No matter which way you broke it down, there was always one day out of the year that was the worst.

24 hours.

1,440 minutes.

Broken down like that, it didn't seem like much. But to Diana Cavendish, it was an eternity. And every year, it got longer. And harder.

Much harder.

(*~*~*~ **May 25th** *~*~*)

" _This is your fault!"_

" _Daryl!"_

" _Don't you Daryl me! She was never like this until_ that _came along!"_

" _Stop it, it's not her fault and you know it! She's only twelve!"_

" _I don't care! She's cut off! I never want to look at her again!"_

" _Bernadette wouldn't-"_

" _Don't! Bernadette is dead, and that little monster is disowned!"_

Diana woke in a cold sweat. Always the same dream. It never stopped, no matter what she put into her system or how much. She sighed and sat up, her head spinning. She would have to try again tonight.

She groaned and blinked, trying to clear the haze from her eyes before looking around to see where she was. It was a bedroom, that much was clear, messy with clothes and a few bottles hanging around. Looking over, she noticed a body in the bed next to her. She couldn't even remember his name, let alone where they met. He was older than her, she remembered that much. Probably around twenty-two or so. Not that age really mattered to her. It was a brief fling. Nothing more, nothing less.

Yawning, she got up and began to get dressed, the familiar ache in her lower half making itself known. As usual, she ignored it and crept out silently. She was a pro when it came to quick and quiet exits. She did, however, pause on her way through the kitchen to take a look inside the guy's wallet and help herself to the $50 she found.

Before she closed it, she took a look at his the guy's license. _Andrew. This guy looks like such a tool._

Snapping it shut and tossing it back on the quartz countertop, she turned and left.

(~*~*~*~*~)

She really didn't give much thought to her classes these days. She did enough to get by, enough to pass, but that was about it. It was probably a minor miracle that she was able to, considering how much time she spent in detention, but she couldn't help it, class was so _boring._ She understood it all. Her foster parents let her live with them as long as she passed school, but they wouldn't do the paperwork to put her in advanced classes, so she was stuck.

She sat in the back of the classroom, nose in a book and her chair tipped back on two legs. Mrs. Babcock, the teacher in charge of detention, didn't care. Diana never caused the old woman any trouble. No, she saved the hell-raising for the hallways and streets. Speaking of which…

She glanced up at the clock. 4:30. Time to jet.

She dropped the chair with a thunk and closed her book with a snap before putting it in her bag and standing. She went up to, who opened a drawer in her desk and pulled out Diana's phone. She handed it to the blonde. "I would really like to stop seeing you so much, Miss Cavendish."

Diana shrugged. "I would really like to stop getting written up. What would you like me to do?"

" Stop carving your names into desks? Stop getting into fights with other students?"

"Oh come on, where's the fun in that? Anyway, I have to go, have a good evening."

The old woman sighed. "You as well. Stay safe, please…"

Diana was already out the door.

(~*~*~*~*~)

Later that night, Diana was sitting at the bar in her usual haunt, _The Grand Triskelion._ Fake ID's could do a lot if you knew how to use them right.

She bottomed out her fourth glass of vodka and sighed, bored out of her mind. She looked around, looking for some source of entertainment. Lucky for her it came through the door in the form of a taller girl with orange hair and a shorter brunette with a weird half ponytail. They flashed their ID's to the disinterested bartender before taking a seat just a few seats down from her own. The orange haired girl said something to her friend before getting up and leaving for a moment, leaving the girl alone.

 _Oh, she looks like she could be fun..._

Casually, Diana got up and slid down, moving right into the seat next to the girl. "How's it going?"

The girl looked up and around before looking at Diana. "Who, me?"

"No, that empty bar stool next to you. Yes, you."

The girl's cheeks heated up as she looked down at her hands, suddenly very shy. "F-fine. You?"

Diana chuckled. "Better than I was before you walked in. How about I buy you a drink?"

She couldn't help but chuckle again as the girl got more flustered and stuttered out something not quite intelligible. She was saved, however, by her orange haired friend coming back over and putting a protective hand on her shoulder. "She bothering you Akko?"

Diana shook her head. "We were merely having a conversation, nothing more. One that you actually interrupted rather rudely."

The girl's eyebrows raised. "Excuse me? Just who the hell do you think you are?"

"Oh, just an innocent bystander apparently giving free lessons in basic etiquette."

"That is it!"

Amanda went to move around her friend to get at Diana, however, the girl sprung up and got in the way. "Amanda no! She's not worth it!"

It took all of the brunettes strength to stop Amanda from getting to Diana. The blonde meanwhile finished off her drink and stood. "It's alright, she couldn't handle me anyway. I should get going. Have a good night ladies."

She went to walk away but not before stopping in front of the brunette. "Come find me if you're ever in the mood for a good time."

Then she kissed her cheek and went to walk out, but not before understanding dawned on Amanda. "Wait a second, I know who you are! Yeah, you're that upper-class reject! Whats the name? Cavendish?"

Diana stopped walking, her fist clenching.

"That's right, you're that snob who's screwed up enough her own aunt disowned her! What did you do exactly? Word on the street is you killed your mother, is that why-"

 _WHAM!_

The rest of Amanda's sentence never left her mouth. Diana's fist made contact with her jaw, the powerful impact sending the orange haired teen to the floor. She sat there for a moment, her face stunned and lip bleeding. There was also a red mark on her cheek shaped like a unicorn rearing on its hind legs from the right on Diana's right hand.

Then before Akko could stop her, Amanda was springing up and lunging for Diana. She grabbed ahold of the girl's shirt and threw her into the bar before yanking her back and preceding to pummel the blondes face.

Diana allowed it to go on for a second before using her arm to break Amanda's grip, and then used both hands to twist Amanda around and pin her arm to her back but before Diana could get her into a headlock, she mule kicked out behind her, knocking the blonde's leg out from under her. Diana staggered, allowing Amanda to break free and spin around to send a powerful haymaker right for the blonde's nose. Amanda was fast for sure.

However, Diana was faster. She ducked the blow, causing Amanda to hit the brunette standing behind her instead. The girl cried out in pain and staggered into the burly guy behind her, who in turn shoved her away into the guy standing behind _him._ The second guy yelled and turned as Akko staggered away and threw a punch into the first guy, who swung back. And then before anyone could stop it, a massive bar fight broke out.

Akko found herself getting shoved and pushed around the room as furniture and bottles broke. Men yelled and people fell on her. She was about to really start panicking when she was grabbed from behind and lifted up and over what turned out to be the bar by a familiar redhead. "C-Chariot!"

The older bar owner gave her a disapproving look and yelled over the noise. "Akko what are you doing here? And what happened to your nose?"

"Amanda broke it on accident! Is it bad?"

"Yes hold still!" Chariot took Akkos face in her hands and, before Akko could stop her, set her nose. Akko cried in pain while Chariot reached for a nearby dishcloth and held it up to Akkos nose to catch the blood. "There! Now you need to get out of here and go see a doctor!"

"Not without Amanda!"

"Well, where is she?"

That was a good question. Akko stood up and tried to find her friend. She thought she caught a glimpse of her through the chaos, but it was hard to be sure. She ended up ducking back down and shaking her head at Chariot.

The redhead sighed, but before she could do anything, the kitchen door burst open and out stepped a lilac-haired woman with a large fire extinguisher. "THAT'S ENOUGH!" She roared and ripped the pin out before blasting the crowd with the extinguisher. "ALL OF YOU OUT! NOW! EXCEPT FOR YOU TWO!" she pointed into the crowd.

One of the guys started to argue with her, but she blasted him with the fire extinguisher again. "I SAID OUT!"

Left with no choice, the other patrons filed out of the trashed bar, leaving a badly battered Diana and Amanda behind. Akko could hardly believe the difference between the girls five minutes ago and now. Amanda's shirt was torn at the sleeve and she had a nice black eye forming. The other thing Akko noticed was that not only was her nose bleeding, but the knuckles on her right hand were as well.

And then there was Diana. Her usually tame hair was frizzy and had what looked like barbeque sauce in too had a bloody nose and bleeding knuckles, but somehow her nose ring had managed to stay in place. The major difference between her and Amanda was that not only was her black eye a hundred times worse, but she also had a few cuts on the back and side of her neck, but from nails or perhaps broken glass, Akko couldn't tell.

Before she could ask, Croix hopped over the bar and walked up to the two girls. "Well? What do you have to say for yourselves?"

Silence.

When no response was forthcoming, Croix sighed and set the tank down. "Fine. One week ban for the three of you. Out! And make sure you go to a doctor and get yourselves looked at!" she turned around and started to walk away, but then turned back again and held out her hand. "And fork over the fake ID's! You're children you shouldn't have them in the first place!"

Diana didn't even balk. She pulled her's out, placed it in the woman's outstretched hand and walked out. Well, walk wasn't the word, it was more like strutting.

Amanda, meanwhile, groaned. "Croix come on I paid $100 for them!'

"I don't care, fork them over!"

There was a tense minute before Amanda grumbled something and pulled the fake ID out of her back pocket.

Akko passed hers over as well but didn't say anything. She was still thinking about that girl. _So your name is Diana huh? I bet deep down, you're not nearly as bad as you act. When was the last time someone cared about you?_

(~*~*~*~*~May 26th~*~*~*~*~)

Diana was at her locker, pulling out her books for her afternoon classes. Not that she would use them. Maybe she would finish carving her name into the wall, Ms. Lucik was a blind old bat, she had no idea what was going on half the time. Or maybe she could just skip altogether, she did want to get that fourth piercing in her right ear.

Then, on the other hand, she didn't have Hannah or Barbara to copy notes from anymore. The thought of those two, falling in line with that cheerleading bitch and walking away from her still hurt.

She closed her locker and was surprised to see the brunette from last night standing there, her nose now straight and bandaged. Diana raised an eyebrow. " I suppose I know why you looked familiar now."

The girl blushed and brushed a strand of hair behind her ear. "Y-yeah. Look, um… I just wanted to see if you were alright. You and Amanda went at it pretty hard, and your neck was all cut up."

"Yes, well that was because your friend threw me on a table, and a few pieces of glassware broke under me. But I'm fine, thank you for the concern. How is your nose?"

Akko looked up and smiled. "Oh, it's fine! The doctor says I'll heal and be swimming again in no time!"

The girl's optimism was contagious. It made Diana want to gag, but also, a small part of her almost found it uplifting. "You swim?"

"Yeah, I'm the fastest girl on the varsity team!"

The blonde nodded. "Well, good for you. Look I have to get to class…"

"Wait! I-um...Do you- do you want to hang out tonight?'

That caught Diana's attention. "Are you trying to take me up on my offer?"

Akko blushed a bit and looked down. "Y-yeah…"

The blonde smirked and leaned against her locker, holding her books to her chest. "Won't your friend take issue with that?"

The girl shrugged. "Its none of her business. I'll meet you at the park at eight?"

Diana was quiet for a moment before nodding. "Alright. I'll see you then." she turned and went to walk away but stopped and turned around. 'By the way, I never learned your name."

"Akko." she was smiling the cutest smile. "My name is Akko. What's yours?"

Despite herself, Diana felt the faintest smile creep onto her lips. "Diana. I'll see you tonight." She turned and left before she really got herself into trouble.

(~*~*~*~*~*~*~)

Diana pushed Akko onto her bed and crawled on top of her. Before Akko could do anything, Diana's lips were brushing hers in a tender kiss, working them softly, while her knee rubbed the inside of Akkos thighs. Before she could stop it a soft gasp slipped out, which in turn brought a smile to Diana's face.

The blonde rewarded her by kissing along her jaw and giving some attention to her neck, which earned her a soft moan. Akko closed her eyes, her heart pounding as she struggled to remember her mission.

"So...hm….so where you are from?"

Diana stopped, her hand at the hem of Akkos shirt and confusion on her face. "What?"

Akko lifted her head a bit. "I asked where are you from?"

"Wedingburgh. Why?"

"Just wondering. Do you have any siblings?"

Diana's face took on a look of annoyance. "Akko, I'm not necessarily looking to socialize here."

Akko sat up more, causing Diana to back up a bit. "Well, why not? There's more than one way to have a good time!'

"Yes, and none of them are what I want to do right now. I would rather," she started to move forwards towards Akko again. "Be doing something a little less vocal right now."

 _Or maybe it would be more vocal. I bet she's a screamer._

Akko sat up more. "Why are you like this? What happened? Why are you so shut off?"

Diana was at this point getting very annoyed. "Akko, if we aren't going to do this, maybe I should leave so I can find someone who _will."_ And she definitely could.

The brunette wasn't done. "Oh come on, you're so shut off. I bet your an awesome person deep down! Don't hide her! Wait where are you going?"

Diana was backing up and climbing off the bed. "I'll see you at school tomorrow. "

She tried to turn away but before she could Akko was grabbing her wrist. She turned back to see the kindest look anyone had given her in a long time. "Maybe I'm wrong, and maybe you never want to talk to me again after this, but please. Let me in. I know your hurting, I saw it in your eyes."

The blonde looked at her a long moment, the familiar ache and loneliness rising up in her chest. She felt her eyes begin to well up a bit but then she closed them and turned away. "I'll see you tomorrow Akko. Have a good night."

"Diana…" The blonde was gone already on her way out the door though, grabbing her shoes on the way.

The bedroom door closed with a click, and Akko groaned and fell back onto the bed. That couldn't have gone worse. She would have to just keep trying. She didn't know why, but she hating seeing Diana like that. Her icy blue eyes were just haunting, full of pain and sadness.

She wouldn't give up, for Diana's sake. She would just try again tomorrow.

(~*~*~*~ **May 27th~*~*~*~)**

Only, Diana didn't show up at school.

Akko spent half the day looking for her, she even talked to Hannah and Barbara.

"She always skips school on the 27th. It's an annual thing."

Akko looked at them oddly. "Why?"

They looked at each other then at her. "Don't you know anything? Her mother died today."

"And you two left her alone?"

One of them, Barbara, but her lip. "Well, we tried the last two years but she kept dodging us. We're pretty sure she goes to her mother's grave. And then that old bridge out on route 52. She likes watching the water I guess. Wait where are you going? Akko! That girl is so rude! Let's go, Hannah."

(~*~*~*~*)

Diana sat in front of a white granite tombstone, her knees pulled up to her chest and the wind blowing her hair behind her.

The stone in front of her was simple, yet elegant.

 _Bernadette Cavendish._

 _Beloved Mother, Sister, Aunt._

 _Gone Too Soon._

Below that was the Cavendish crest, a rearing unicorn of a field of blue, and then her birth and death dates.

" _This is her fault!"_

" _Murderer!"_

" _Disowned!"_

Despite herself, she felt tears well up in her eyes. She pressed her forehead to her knees and put her hands on her head, trying to drown out the voices. It was always the worst today, no matter what drug she took or how much alcohol she drank, it never stopped. Her Aunt and cousins were always in her head ridiculing her. Blaming her for her mother.

Her heart fell further into her stomach and she started to cry harder, hating every fiber of her being. She killed her mother. Just by being born. Something went wrong that Bernadette never quite recovered from. It finally took her life twelve years later.

She finally started to ball. She deserved to die. She _wanted_ to die. She was a miserable waste of flesh. No friends, no future, no family. And the only woman who had ever shown her love was dead. Because of her.

Diana looked up at the glistening tombstone again, her already swollen eyes even puffier from her crying. She couldn't do this anymore. She felt like she was trapped, backed into a corner with no way out. Or surrounded by an army, every soldier holding a spear, and every spear pointed at her. She couldn't think, she couldn't breathe. Her heart was racing and her head pounding. It felt like she was spinning in endless circles, just the same thoughts over and over with no one to turn to for help, no matter how loud she screamed. No one cared. She was on her own.

She couldn't do this anymore.

She was done.

(*~*~*~*~*~*)

After a little bit of digging, Akko managed to find where Diana's mother was buried, the woman had been a prominent public figure after all, however by the time Akko had gotten there Diana was gone. There was a fresh bouquet of flowers by the tombstone, but that was it. She turned and raced back to her car. Diana had to be on Route 52.

It was just getting dark, and she had to click on her headlights as she drove through the twisting back roads, pushing the speed limit when she could, panicking when she couldn't. How Diana had gotten this bad was beyond her, and part of her wondered why she even bothered, but then she reminded herself that Diana was alone. And she needed someone. Akko was going to be that someone, she _wanted_ to be that someone. She wanted to badly to fix Diana and make her smile.

She just hoped she wasn't too late.

(~*~*~*~*~*~)

Down on Route 52, Diana stood on the old steel truss bridge, looking down into the river below. It was high, but not running particularly fast. The river had crumbling concrete flood walls running down either bank, which in turn were framed by the lush green forests on either side. The water itself was a beautiful shade of blue, and clear enough you could easily see the bottom of the river bed, about a hundred feet or so below her.

Looking up, reds, oranges, yellows and even purples were splashed across the sky by the setting sun. Diana couldn't have found a better view. Not that she was concerned with the view, no she was more concerned about the isolation the spot provided. She could do this quickly, without being bothered or stopped.

The bridge itself was actually condemned, and the road blocked off half a mile on either side, so cars driving by wouldn't be a concern, and it was buried so deep in the woods foot traffic wasn't a concern either.

Taking a deep breath, Diana climbed up on the rusted guardrail, the wind gently blowing her hair behind her. Holding onto the beam to her right, she closed her eyes and just focused on breathing. Her heart was pounding in her chest, but the rest of her was oddly calm. This was it. All she had to do was fall. Just a few seconds of falling and it would all be over. No more anything. Just the peace she hadn't felt in far too long.

She opened her eyes and looked at the sunset one last time before letting go and falling forward. The funny thing was, before the momentum took over and pulled her down, before the wind howling in her ears drownd out everything else, she thought she heard someone scream her name.

(*~*~*~*~*)

"Diana no!" Akko screamed, but it was too late. The blonde fell forward and off the bridge, down into the water below. However, Akko had stopped watching at that point. She was already charging toward the flood wall as fast as she could. Her foot hit the concrete and then she was flying through the air, twisting her arms and legs into place, executing a perfect dive.

She didn't remember much past that point, the adrenaline was flowing hot and fast and all she could focus on was getting to Diana before it was too late. She had to.

(*~*~*~*~*)

" _Moving in 3 2 1…"_

…

" _...Shattered ribs...organ damage…."_

 _..._

" _I need a ten blade…"_

…

" _She's in V-Fib! Start massaging the heart!"_

…

" _She's coding! Charge to 10! Come on kid don't do this. Fight it! Clear!"_

 _..._

" _It's not your fault Diana."_

 _That voice was different. She knew that voice. She hadn't heard it in years, but she could never forget. "M-mother?"_

" _Don't blame yourself, sweetheart. Please, go out and live."_

 _Diana kept turning around, trying to find the source of the voice in the blackness. "Mother don't go! Not again! I can't do this!"_

 _She turned again, and suddenly it was like she was looking at an older version of herself. No piercings, no scars. Just a kind, smiling, Diana. "Mother…"_

 _The tears were falling faster than she could stop. The older woman hugged her daughter and held onto her with all her strength. "Go back, Diana. I didn't raise a quitter. Be the Cavendish you were born to be."_

 _Diana looked up at her mother. "But-Aunt Daryl-"_

" _Is_ wrong _Diana. I got sick. I died. You had nothing to do with it. It was_ genetic. _I have to go, they didn't give me much time. Please, promise me you'll stop this. You're not alone."_

" _I-I promise. Mother d-don't go...p-please I need you...I'm s-so a-alone…"_

" _No, you're not. You'll see I promise." She reached out and touched Diana's cheek. "You've grown into such a beautiful young woman. Go, fight. Make me proud. I love you so much…"_

 _The young woman clung to her mother as tightly as she could. "I l- love you too…"_

...

"Miss, I really do need to look at that arm."

"I'm fine! I'm not going anywhere until Diana wakes up!"

"You have an open wound that needs to be cleaned and debrided."

"Then just do it here! I'm not moving!"

There was a groan, and then the sound of a door opening and closing. And then silence.

Diana tried to open her eyes, her mouth, her hand. No response from anything. She wanted to pound her head into the wall in frustration.

" _Go, fight…"_

Fight.

Pulling on what little strength she had, Diana forced her eyes open and struggled to take a breath. The trouble was there was something going down her throat, she felt like she was choking…

And then there was the sound of a girls voice yelling for help, followed by running footsteps. Suddenly a woman's face came into her line of sight while someone behind her held her head in place. The doctor said something about staying calm before pulling whatever was down her throat out. The blonde gagged as the tube passed her uvula and then it was gone. She rolled onto her side and started coughing, only to have her torso erupt in pain. Crying out in pain, she tried to curl up into a ball but before she could there were two pairs on hands on her, pulling her back onto her back and holding her down.

"Easy. Shh, it's ok Diana. Relax you're safe. Please if you don't calm down I'm going to have to restrain you and I really, really don't want to do that. Deep breaths now. In, and out. In, and out. There, better?"

The blonde nodded, her heart beginning to calm down and finally getting a grip on herself. Once she was calmer, she began to take in her surroundings. She was in a hospital ward, one that looked like an ICU, and hooked up to several machines and IV's. Her whole torso was aching and breathing, while better without the tube, was still difficult.

She looked up at the woman, but before she could open her mouth the brunette smiled and started to answer the unspoken questions. "My name is Dr. Yuki Kagari, I'm an attending trauma surgeon here at Ivywood United Hospital. Do you remember what happened?"

Did she remember? How could she forget? The view, the fall, the icy cold water. Diana nodded her head and the doctor nodded as well. "That's good. You were very lucky, your friend Akko was there and managed to save you. You have several broken ribs, one of which shattered and punctured your lung in three places, however, neither of them collapsed. I can't emphasize how lucky you were that Akko was there to save your life."

At the mention of Akko, Diana looked around and for the first time noticed the girl wasn't there. She didn't know why she expected her to be. Diana meant nothing to her, and yet…

"A-Akko?" Her voice came out scratchy and weak, hardly above a whisper.

She tried to speak again but the doctor put her hand on Diana's arm and shook her head. "It's alright. She's a room over having her arm looked at. She refused to leave the room while you woke up and I'm afraid my nurse has been hounding her. She cut her left arm rather badly diving in after you. We believe she caught it on a piece of loose flood wall when she dove in, however we can't say for sure, as she doesn't remember that part of the swim."

The blonde nodded again, finally laying her head back down onto her pillow. Then she turned her head to look at the doctor. "My- my foster parents?"

The doctor looked down at her clipboard, but Diana noticed her eyes weren't moving. She was stalling. " We did attempt a two phone calls, but no one answered. We figured they're probably asleep, but we're going to keep trying."

Diana looked away and sighed. "Don't bother, they don't care."

"I'm sure they-"

"-Don't care."

"Diana that's not-"

"It's true. They really don't."

Doctor Kagari sighed. "Is there anyone else you would like me to call?"

The broken young woman still wouldn't look at her. "No. I'm alone."

"No your not."

Diana and her doctor both turned to see Akko standing in the doorway. She had on a white tank top and faded blue jeans, topped off with worn out sneakers and very frizzy hair. She looked like she had been sleeping in a hospital the last two days. That was when it dawned on Diana, the girl probably had. The other thing she noticed was the bandages across her nose and on Akkos forearm. Apparently, the nurse had finally been able to do her job.

They looked at each other, forgetting the doctor was there until the woman coughed. "I think I'm going to step out. I'll be back in a few hours Diana."

Doctor Kagari left, leaving the girls alone and closing the girl behind her. Akko wandered over to the chair next to Diana's bed and sat down. "S-so, how are you feeling?"

Diana sighed."Like I fell off a bridge. Akko how- how did you find me? Why did you come?"

Akko looked down at her hands. "Well, I asked Hannah and Barbara. They said- they said that that day was the day your mother died. They said that you always went to her grave and then out to that stupid bridge. They said you liked watching the water but I- I don't think you liked it because it was pretty, did you." It wasn't a question.

For some reason, Diana couldn't look Akko in the eye. She felt so bad. Why did she feel bad? "It was the hight. I thought it would tall enough, and isolated enough. I suppose I was wrong on both accounts ."

It was quiet again for a few moments until Akko spoke up again. " I called them."

Diana looked over at her. "Who?

"Hannah and Barbara. They didn't care, not until I went to find them. I yelled at them pretty hard, they were both crying when I finally left. I don't know if they'll come but I- I don't think they're very good friends Diana."

"No, I suppose they're not. H-how is your arm and nose?"

Akko looked down at her bandaged arm. "It's ok. It was cut up pretty good but they cleaned it and stitched it up. I won't be swimming for awhile but it's ok. My nose is good too."

"That's good. I'm sorry you got hurt."

Akko shrugged."It's ok. I would do it again."

She would do it again. Akko would go through this whole thing again. For her. She couldn't understand. "Akko why?

"Because I- you're hurting. I know you're hurting. And you deserve so much more. No one needs to be hurt and feeling the way you do. Your family left you, your friends left you, but you have me Diana, and I know it's not much, but it is something. No one should be alone. Y-you can even move in with me to get out of the foster system! I already cleared it with my aunt!" She pointed at the door behind her, confusing the blonde. Akko must have realized because she backpedaled. "Oh! That's my aunt! She's an awesome doctor! And a great cook! I live with her because the school district she lives in has a really good swim program and I can get into all of the inter-city competitions, she said you can move in with us if you want to! But she has to discharge you first and get you a different doctor so there's no conflict of interest."

Akko continued to babble on, meanwhile Diana tried to reflect on what she remembered The bridge, the fall, little snippets from when she came in, but she also remembered seeing her mother. And she remembered everything she had said. Everything. That it wasn't her fault. That it was genetic. That she loved her more than anything. She remembered the smile, the hugs.

And she remembered her mother saying she wasn't alone.

Maybe this babbling girl, this girl who dove into a river and hurt herself to save a stranger, cared. She cared. It started to feel like the clouds were beginning to clear, and there was a blue sky ahead. The pain was starting to go away. It wasn't gone, not completely, but she could work on that. She could fix this. She looked over to Akko, who was still rambling on. "And Aunt Yuki has a really really good psychologist friend who she works with that she thinks could help you. And Aunt Yuki wants to help you too. She says your aunt is a horrible person, and that you deserve to have a way better life than what you're stuck with."

Diana looked at her, and for the first time in a long, long time, felt something _good_ stir deep down inside. She didn't recognize it at first, and it scared her. Right up until she realized- it was hope. She felt hopeful. "Akko I- I think I would like that."


End file.
